The Case for Atelier Crenn

Dominique Crenn reposted this photo of ours on Instagram, and we can basically die happy now.

Background: 
Here’s the deal:

• Atelier Crenn has two Michelin Stars. It should have three.

• It was left off of this year’s World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, and it should have placed in the top ten (we have eaten at four of the top ten—including number one—so we are not speaking from ignorance).

The world of fine dining is still in many respects a “boy’s club,” and we believe Dominique Crenn’s culinary artistry has not yet received the recognition it deserves. Scallionpancake is here to change that.

We are going to go a step further, in fact: Crenn’s dishes are more inventive, more flavorful, and, most importantly, more reflective of her passion than those we tasted at EMP and The French Laundry. At the aforementioned restaurants, we felt that the chefs were resting on their laurels and relying on their famous names in many respects. Perhaps because Crenn’s reputation does not yet precede her, she is making food that keeps diners on their toes and showcases a cuisine that blends creativity and taste in a way that places her quite firmly in our top five restaurants (she is still below Noma, but not far below).

Soooo excited. And perhaps a bit underdressed. But San Francisco is a walking town, and we definitely walked to dinner. Hence the sneaks.

If you’ve seen the Netflix Chef’s Table episode on Atelier Crenn, you know that Crenn created her Marina District San Francisco restaurant as a tribute to her father, Allain. Together with her mother, he introduced Crenn to a wide variety of cuisines at a young age. In her 20s, Crenn moved from France to San Francisco to begin her restaurant career.  In 2011, she opened Atelier Crenn and received two Michelin Stars that same year. In 2015, she opened the smaller, slightly more casual Petit Crenn, and this year she opened Bar Crenn right next door to Atelier Crenn, which serves wine, cocktails, and small plates. In 2018, Crenn won the James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Western Region of the United States.

We dined at Atelier Crenn in May 2018 and enjoyed the spring tasting menu. We didn’t see Crenn on our visit, as she was on vacation, but she is in the restaurant most nights of the week, so you are likely to catch a glimpse of her in action when you go.

Eat This: 
Once seated, each diner is presented with a poem that is a menu in disguise. Each line is a coded lyrical verse that hints at the dish to come. We had so much fun trying to figure out what type of dish was coming based on the poem, though we only guessed correctly for a couple (we knew the “Royal Lady’s fruitful labor” was referencing a honey bee. That’s about it).

Let us take you through our poetic and awe-inspiring meal at Atelier Crenn, in the form of Crenn’s verse and culinary prowess:

Kombucha

Okay, okay, The first course doesn’t correspond to the poem. But the kombucha apertif was a delight. Delicious, cool, and refreshing.

Spring has come with its cool breeze

Kir Breton

The first course that corresponds with the poem. If you’ve seen the Chef’s Table episode on Crenn, this dish features prominently. The ingredients in a Kir Breton cocktail (crème de cassis and dry cider) are enrobed in white chocolate. You pop this in your mouth all at once, and the cool and sweet flavors explode. Such a strong start, and it deserves its place as Crenn’s signature dish.

See this most adored gift from Neptune, an aureate bloom

Geoduck, Sea Urchin, & Citrus

Have you ever had geoduck? We hadn’t. It’s a large clam, portioned here along with the sea urchin to look like a beautiful flower of sorts. The texture of the clam and sea urchin on the rice cracker was divine.

This came out in a cloche filled with dry ice, so the presentation was as exciting as the taste.

Warriors ashore bathe in a rosy glow as luminous as its gilded crown

Prawn, Seaweed, & Whey

The most exciting thing about Crenn’s food is the way she plays with textures and flavors. Each bite feels unexpected, and there are approximately 35 experiences happening at once inside of your mouth. That’s what she said?

The circle of consommé and the inner circle of whey each added layers of flavor to this dish.

To bury in fallen leaves my treasures of the earth and sea

Seed & Grain

Smoked buckwheat, quinoa soil, smoked trout roe (bottarga), and smoked sturgeon pearls with a warm bonito dashi broth. This course was rich and comforting.

From the wintry mist, tender specks on the meadow begin to stir

English Pea & Mint

One of our favorite dishes. Early spring peas were mixed with beads of frozen crème fraîche. Tableside, ham broth was stirred in. This was spring in a bowl—the flavors were bursting with freshness and the mix of crunchy textures made every bite a revelation.

As if awoken by shimmering pearls and ashen cloud

Caviar, Buckwheat, & Koji

Caviar and gold leaf: how could this be bad? Served with lacy buckwheat crackers, this course was fun to eat and the flavors were perfectly rich.

Brioche & House-made butter

No verse for bread?! We shall write one:

“Oh bread, for you my heart beats”

Alternate verse: Brioche with butter? Enough said.

Butter-dipped radishes

Another one that is not part of the poem, but wow, wow, wow. I love the radish, butter, and salt combo, but Crenn took it to a new level by enrobing the entire radish in the slightly sweet butter. Every other butter/radish duo will pale in comparison to this.

Hidden beneath the bluffs an armored gent listens

Abalone, Cabbage & Smoked Crème

This was one of the only dishes we weren’t floored by. We liked it, but it wasn’t super memorable. Moving along.

To the snowy stillness of soft swimming creatures

Striped bass, Boudin Noir, & Morel

The best part of this course was that you got to choose your knife from a box of assorted knives a waiter brought around. I always loved '“choose your own adventure” books, but choose your own cutlery was nearly as fun.

You may have noticed that there is no meat on this menu. Once we had this course, I wasn’t missing it at all. The sea bass was meaty and so rich. I felt very satisfied, but Jason wouldn’t have hated a bit of red meat.

While the ephemeral beauty born of jade effervescence sang

Matcha Tea Service

Matcha mixed with bone broth. Could Crenn get any more au courant with this course? I dug it. A more creative palate cleanser than stodgy old sorbet, thats’s for sure.

For the verdant bounty of the gatherer’s harvest in caring hands

Onion Royal & Comté

A very satisfying and warming cheese course. Not a standout when looking back at the entire meal, however.

Dessert: 

From the Royal Lady’s fruitful labor a dulcet offering

Honey, Sapote, & Pollen

The verse we guessed! Honey! The bee pollen magic shell on the honey ice cream was super fun and majorly tasty.

As the drifter rests, in reverie of days ahead

Coconut & Pineapple

A rich, creamy, dreamy, coconut pineapple mousse inside of a chocolate shell.

In Scallionpancake’s opinion, the dessert course is a major weakness at many fine dining restaurants (we’re looking at you, EMP), and Atelier Crenn’s offerings blew us away. This coconut had so many lovely texture and flavor elements (chunks of pineapple are hiding inside of the mousse), and the portion was large enough to leave us satisfied. This dessert was the absolute best we’ve had anywhere.

Spring has come and is full of sweet surprises

Mignardises

A real cacao pod! What could possibly be inside?!

Sweetness, bounty, thanks

An assortment of fabulous chocolates, that’s what!

My favorite was the peanut butter one on the right—it was essentially a next level PB Crisp (PS-sign the petition to bring back PB Crisp! It’s my life’s cause).

Drink: 
Neither of us did the beverage pairing, but we each got two drinks. Jason enjoyed mocktails, while I indulged in the most glorious champagne. Cheers!

Non-Alcoholic Gin & Tonic

Tasted just like a real G & T. Seriously amazing. Stocked by the Seedlip brand.

Atmosphere: 
Crenn’s father’s paintings adorn the walls, along with sticks and other natural elements. The entire effect is that you are dining in a cozy bird’s nest. Cozy, indeed—there are only eight tables, making this the smallest fine dining restaurant we’ve ever experienced.

Bird's Nest Hospitality: 
The service throughout the night was flawless, and the servers were very patient and when we asked them to repeat explanations for each dish. Because you know we did.

There was only one snafu, and perhaps this reflects poorly on us, but we feel that Scallionpancake readers deserve to know our truth: we are pen stealers. Gulp. When we dine in fancy, Michelin-starred establishments, we hope and pray that we get a branded pen with our bill (note: even when you pay ahead of time with Tock, you still must pay for drinks the night of), and when we do, well…we take that pen and put it in a v. special faux marble jar from The Container Store. Like ya do, right? Well, Atelier Crenn is the only time we have been called out. When the waiter came back to get our bill after we had signed, he looked inside the envelope and asked if we had the pen! Yikes. We owned up, and said that we were pen collectors (read: thieves), and laughed it off. He wasn’t laughing, but he let us leave with out absconded pen nonetheless. Though we should perhaps feel shamed, we only feel that for a $700+ meal, it really shouldn’t have been mentioned.

Since we are talking cash money, let’s get into the details. Like Eleven Madison Park, Atelier Crenn uses the Tock booking system, which means that diners pay for their meals in advance. We love this feature, as paying for the meal on the night of can be a bit of a downer, so it’s nice to get that pesky part out of the way ahead of time. At the time of publication, each tasting meal is $335 per person, with the tip included. Beverage pairings begin at $220 per person.

Okay, so this is not the outside of Atelier Crenn. But this amazing house nearby caught my eye. It’s a hindu temple with a very cool history. The more you know!

Frankie's Notes: 
Don’t worry, the fabled pen is resting safely on our kitchen counter in its faux-marble home; We will let you come see the pen for $335 per person; We are writing sternly-worded letters to the folks behind the 50 Best Restaurants List, and we are going to sign them all “#MeToo""; Our friend Miriam, who is a mourning dove, dined in a nest every night until she was scared off by a giant raven who ate her bird children; I am currently writing a “choose your own adventure” book that is all about choosing the knife that will ultimately decide your destiny and success fighting against large, chocolate-shell coconut.

Rating: 5 out of 5 + 3 Michigan Pugs

 

Grön: A Review of Finland's Best Restaurant

Background:
Toni Kostian & Lauri Kähkönen opened Grön in 2015 on a small street in the design district of Helsinki, Finland. Kostian won Top Chef Finland in 2016. Among its many other accolades, Grön won the Finnish Gastronomy Society's "Restaurant of the Year" in 2017. The restaurant received its first Michelin Star in 2018 and is one of only five restaurants in Finland to hold a star.

Eat This:
Grön offers a fixed tasting menu for 54 euros. You can choose from their standard or vegan menu. We chose the standard, which was basically a half step up from being vegan. They also have a few add-ons you can get, which of course we got, because that's the way we roll. 

HAPANJUURILEIPÄ -SOURDOUGH BREAD

with butter, pumpkin seeds, seasoning, and cold smoked fish roe with sour cream, onion flowers and chives

Yvonne loves sour cream, so we ordered the 10 euro supplement and she almost got sick eating it all. The butter was delicious, as it was grilled first and then whipped. 

KASVI - PLANT

New potatoes with black currant leaf flavours,
sorrel and grass sauce

This was the winner of the savory dishes for us. The "grass sauce" was a perfect mixture of sweet and sour. The potato was cooked perfectly underneath everything, which added a nice earthy tone to the dish.

LIHA - MEAT

Pea ”Pâte Brisée” topped with raw and fermented peas, lovage and dry-aged beef

This dish highlighted the local lovage, which is similar to parsley. On top of shredded lovage, mixed in was sliced lovage, and poured over was a lovage sauce. The pastry bottom was the highlight for me of this dish, as well the mixture of textures--from the crunchy peas, to the tender beef, and flaky pastry.

KALA - FISH

Grilled carrots with elderflower hollandaise, summer flowers, pollen and reduced shrimp broth

The "fish" dish was really all about the carrot, which was chopped and grilled, and then arranged in a flower shape topped with shaved carrots. The shrimp broth was a 24-hour shrimp sauce poured over. We both agreed this dish was too carrot forward for both of us, and was missing an oompf we expected for the main course.

MAITO - DAIRY

Unripe strawberries with goat cheese and buttermilk whey

This was the supplemental cheese course, which consisted of a green strawberry topped with a goat cheese. This was a cool concept, but nothing to really write home about.

VILLI - WILD

Milk parfait with woodruff crème anglaise,
strawberries and rhubarb

This was our second favorite course after the salad, and wow, was this amazing! A strawberry granite (or granita), topped with a rhubarb flower, and covered in woodruff sauce, meringue, and cream. Despite all of the elements at play, the dish blended together seamlessly to create a great symphony of tastes in each bite. 

Last Bite

Rhubarb marmalade with licorice salt

What a way to go out. This was a delicious bite, with the licorice salt being the beautiful umami to balance this guy out. I could have literally eaten 100 million of these and killed myself #deathbyrhubarbmarmalade

Drink:
Grön has a concentrated wine list focused on organically produced wines. The wine list is hand written in a notebook, which was super adorable. They also serve one gin, which is the traditional liquor of choice in Finland.

Atmosphere:
This was the smallest restaurant we have ever been to, with 12 two-person tables and the kitchen all in the same space. The restaurant couldn't have been more than 400 square feet. This made for a very family-like atmosphere, where we felt as if we were dining in someone's home kitchen. The decorations consisted of a large abstract painting on one wall and containers filled with dried and aging ingredients on the other. Summers in Finland are long, with the sun setting around 11:00pm and it not really ever getting 100% dark, so it was a very surreal experience eating dinner at 10:00pm in almost complete daylight. 

Finnish Hospitality:
What you'll find in Finland is that people are very even-keeled and not particularly prone to small talk, so when you are in a bus or train it can be completely silent; however, Finnish people are exceptionally nice and will go out of their way to help you. The wait staff at Grön fit this description to a tee, with the waitress seeming almost shy, but as soon as you asked her a question she would answer it in a very thoughtful, thorough way that makes you think the Finnish people have figured out the proper way of communication. The chefs hand delivered each dish to us and explained the dishes thoroughly, although sometimes we crude Americans couldn't understand it through their Finnish-accented English. Americans are so behind the rest of the world when it comes to knowing languages! We talked a lot this trip about how we will put our future Scallionpancake children in language immersion schools one day. 

Frankie's Notes:
Frankie isn't allowed to come to Finland in the summer because he would party too hard with all the daylight; Reindeer is an underrated meat and it should be served throughout the world, sorry Rudolph; Saunas are really hot - too hot for two country bumpkins from the states; The Nordic countries are #frenchbulldognation, which we feel like is one of their only fatal flaws--where are all the pugs?

RATING: 5 OUT OF 5

 

Eleven Madison Park

Background:
Eleven Madison Park (EMP) was opened in 1998 by world renowned restaurateur Danny Meyer. Meyer is the man behind NYC institutions Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, Blue Smoke, and...SHAKE SHACK. Yes, the same genius behind Shake Shack founded what some considered the best restaurant in the world. In 2006, Meyer hired Daniel Humm as head chef, and he and Danny (that's what his friends call him) quickly turned EMP into one of the top restaurants in New York. Humm bought the restaurant from Meyer in 2011, which is when EMP earned its first Michelin Star. By 2012, they had earned three Michelin Stars. Currently the restaurant ranks #1 in the world. 

Eat This:
When booking a reservation, you have two options. You can do the full tasting menu in the main dining room for $315/person, or you can do an abbreviated five course tasting menu in the bar room for $175/person. We went for the full tasting menu, because that's how we live our lives.

Black & White

Cookie with Cheddar & Apple

When you arrive at the table you are presented with a box. What's in the box? This black and white cookie--a savory nod to the famous NYC staple. It's a great first bite to start the meal.

Bread

Scallop Butter, & Broth

The first real course was the bread course, which we learned was designed for the winter menu to provide something hot to warm us as we began our meal. This course consisted of four distinct parts: bread, scallop butter, scallop broth, and then live scallops with sea urchin immediately following this. Yvonne was obsessed with this butter (check out her other website: www.yvonnelovesbutter.net), which was creamy with a rich, umami scallop flavor.

Scallop

Live with Sea Urchin

My favorite part of this dish was the scallop broth, which was thick and flavorful, and tasted somewhat like the best miso soup you've ever had in your life. The raw scallop with sea urchin was presently nicely on a seashell. It felt as if we were in The Little Mermaid, receiving a pearl from our boyfriend Eric (love you, Eric!).

caviar

Benedict with Smoked Ham, Sturgeon, and Hollandaise

Another play on an NYC favorite: eggs benedict. This was probably the coolest presentation of the night, with the caviar in a special EMP tin, which we later got to take home, as well as a row of small English muffins presented on an elevated wood plank. We loved the interactive element of making our little sandwiches with the quail egg and caviar provided.

Squid

Grilled with Juniper and Horseradish

At this point in the meal, we were given choices as to what we wanted. I chose the squid, and Yvonne chose the foie gras. The squid tasted like a tartare, refreshing and cold with the slight kick of the horseradish.

FoiE Gras

Seared with Maple and Apple

Yvonne proclaimed this to be the best foie gras she has ever had. The presentation with the thinly sliced apple hiding the foie gras was on point.

Halibut

Poached with Variations of Turnip

This was the surprise of the night for me. When I ordered the halibut, I wasn't excited, but I wanted to order something different from Yvonne. The halibut was excellent, and the turnip was presented in three ways--in the sauce, mixed with the halibut, and then sauteed underneath the halibut. Really a refreshing and surprising way to serve both the halibut and turnips, and a truly special EMP dish.

lobster

Butter-poached with Butternut Squash and Chestnut

This was the stereotypical lobster dish at a nice restaurant. Cooked right. Tasted good, but nothing really memorable.

mushroom

Tart with Cremini & Black Truffle

This was the one table side preparation of the meal. The captain wheeled over a cart and proceeded to cut open a crust that was baking on top of a cast iron pan. She then took the crust and turned it into the "pizza" crust, which she then lathered with black truffle & cremini paste and shaved cheddar cheese. So good. so cool. It was also served with a melange of portabello and cremini mushrooms on the side.

Duck

Honey and Lavender glazed with Cabbage

This duck is everything to me. It's the best duck in the world. What makes it so special? It's the skin, which is thick and crusted with Szechuan peppercorns and glazed with honey and lavender. The actual duck meat is cooked medium rare and has the perfect tenderness to match the slight crunch of the crust. It's the most perfect bird I've ever had.

Tubby Cheese

Grilled with Celery Root, Black Truffle, and Winter Greens

EMP's take on a cheese course. They bring out a perfectly grilled circle of cheese with black truffle, and then also mix a salad right in front of you with black truffle vinaigrette. This grilled cheese was as down home as Eleven Madison Park can get, but with the black truffle thrown in to make sure you remember where you are. A great dish to end the savory courses.

Donut

Cranberry & Pear filled with Mulled Wine Ice Cream

Our favorite dessert. The donut was filled with cranberry and pear, but the star of the show for me was the mulled wine ice cream. What a unique and cool flavor! I could have eaten a whole pint of it.

Butternut squash

Ice Cream with Sarsaparilla and Pumpkin Cake

A very warm winter dessert. I love a good pumpkin anything, #PSL for life. I am also a sucker for exotic ice creams (see mulled wine above). So this one was good. And that's how I would describe the desserts at EMP: just good. Overall, the desserts are kind of disappointing for the type of restaurant and the standard of EMP.

chocolate

Torte with Creme Fraiche Ice Cream and Cranberry

Again, a solid desert but nothing to write home about. Tasted good at the time, but we're not going to remember it a month from now.

Pretzel

Covered in Chocolate

The last bite, and one of the best. This is the best chocolate covered pretzel I've ever had, hands down. What made this so good was the chocolate to pretzel ratio was perfect. The pretzels were made in house, and had a doughy, marzipan taste.

Drink:
Okay, so we screwed up and didn't order an alcoholic beverage, which was stupid because they are known for having amazing cocktails. In our defense, we did have two two pickle backs immediately before dinner at my old favorite haunt, Whiskey Rebel, with best friend of the blog Vishnu "Charlotte Heartthrob" Pillai. The cocktail menu was presented by ingredient. The options included apple, chocolate, sarsaparilla, cranberry, kombu, and others. They also offered non-alcoholic options. I went for the mushroom mocktail, because I'd never had a drink made with mushrooms before. I guess I grew up sheltered and unaware of what the world had to offer. 

Mushroom

Porcini Mushroom Broth, Oolong tea, Squash Syrup, Honey, Verjus and Cold Brew Coffee

This was one of the coolest drinks I've ever had. I can only explain the flavor as mushroom with a sweet coffee aftertaste. The mushroom wasn't overwhelming, though. It was a flavor I have never had before, and I loved it.

Atmosphere:
Eleven Madison Park has the coolest and best atmosphere of any top notch restaurant we've been to. It feels like you're walking into The Great Gatsby, because you sort of are. The restaurant is located in an art deco lobby of an office building originally owned by Met Life. The chandeliers and crown molding are all original, and the large florescent light on the ceiling was the first florescent light in New York City. The restaurant was just renovated a few months ago, with subtle changes. Sometimes when you go to the world's best restaurants, the atmosphere is museum like, with patrons almost scared to have too much fun. EMP was different. Everyone seemed like they were having a really good time. The waiters also seemed to have a sense of humor, and they weren't afraid to joke with patrons or chat with them, cutting the tension that often comes with a restaurant of this stature. 

Gatsby Hospitality:
Eleven Madison Park has the best service of any restaurant we have been to. Hands down. From the moment you walk in, you feel like you're the only patron that matters in the restaurant. But it's not stuffy--the servers joke around, and, of course, they answer literally any question you have about the restaurant in a split second. Special requests? Glad you asked. There is literally a person whose job it is to make people's experiences magical. If a waiter overhears that someone loves ice cream, for instance, you might get a house-made pint of ice cream to take home at the end of the meal. Want all of the desserts instead of choosing just one? Just ask. We did. Want a pet baby lion delivered to your table at the end of the meal? Okay, maybe not, but you get the point. EMP spends a lot of effort on their hospitality, and it pays off.

Frankie's Notes:
We made a special request to be instantly transported to the 1920s, and we are now stuck in a time warp; Shout out to Rita Ackermann (no relation), who painted the large abstract on the wall; Every meal should start with cookies; Not getting a cocktail at EMP is like refusing wine from Jesus; We are regretting not dropping hints about our love of ice cream.

Rating:

5 out of 5 with 2 Michigan Pugs